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Every Friday TTS has an office meeting. They usually consist of some motivational tips for the sales team, staff expectations and goals. We also review our weekly struggles and help each other by giving helpful tips on how to pull through those tough moments when we feel we just “CAN’T ANYMORE!”.

Last weeks meeting stood out to me because of the valuable information that was provided to us. SOOOOOO valuable that I wanted to share it with all of you!

An inspirational article was presented to the staff by our CEO. During the meeting we were able to pick it apart and see what applies to our candidates and clients. After doing so – we compared ourselves to this article and realized this does not only apply to what WE look for in our candidates BUT whats expected of us as employees too.

Whether your’e 20 and just starting off OR older and think you have ALL the experience in the world – doesn’t matter –> Check it out! 🙂

2.You’re Talented, But Talent is Overrated – Congratulations, you may be the most capable, creative, knowledgeable & multi-tasking generation yet. As my father says, “I’ll Give You a Sh-t Medal.” Unrefined raw materials (no matter how valuable) are simply wasted potential. There’s no prize for talent, just results. Even the most seemingly gifted folks methodically and painfully worked their way to success. (Tip: read “Talent is Overrated”)

3.We’re More Productive in the Morning – During my first 2 years at Docstoc (while I was still in my 20’s) I prided myself on staying at the office until 3am on a regular basis. I thought I got so much work done in those hours long after everyone else was gone. But in retrospect I got more menial, task-based items done, not the more complicated strategic planning, phone calls or meetings that needed to happen during business hours. Now I stress an office-wide early start time because I know, for the most part, we’re more productive as a team in those early hours of the day.

4.Social Media is Not a Career – These job titles won’t exist in 5 years. Social media is simply a function of marketing; it helps support branding, ROI or both. Social media is a means to get more awareness, more users or more revenue. It’s not an end in itself. I’d strongly caution against pegging your career trajectory solely to a social media job title.

5.Pick Up the Phone – Stop hiding behind your computer. Business gets done on the phone and in person. It should be your first instinct, not last, to talk to a real person and source business opportunities. And when the Internet goes down… stop looking so befuddled and don’t ask to go home. Don’t be a pansy, pick up the phone.

6.Be the First In & Last to Leave ­– I give this advice to everyone starting a new job or still in the formative stages of their professional career. You have more ground to make up than everyone else around you, and you do have something to prove. There’s only one sure-fire way to get ahead, and that’s to work harder than all of your peers.

7.Don’t Wait to Be Told What to Do – You can’t have a sense of entitlement without a sense of responsibility. You’ll never get ahead by waiting for someone to tell you what to do. Saying “nobody asked me to do this” is a guaranteed recipe for failure. Err on the side of doing too much, not too little.

8.Take Responsibility for Your Mistakes – You should be making lots of mistakes when you’re early on in your career. But you shouldn’t be defensive about errors in judgment or execution. Stop trying to justify your F-ups. You’re only going to grow by embracing the lessons learned from your mistakes, and committing to learn from those experiences.

9.You Should Be Getting Your Butt Kicked – Meryl Streep in “The Devil Wears Prada” would be the most valuable boss you could possibly have. This is the most impressionable, malleable and formative stage of your professional career. Working for someone that demands excellence and pushes your limits every day will build the most solid foundation for your ongoing professional success.

10.A New Job a Year Isn’t a Good Thing ­­– 1-year stints don’t tell me that you’re so talented that you keep outgrowing your company. It tells me that you don’t have the discipline to see your own learning curve through to completion. It takes about 2-3 years to master any new critical skill, give yourself at least that much time before you jump ship. Otherwise your resume reads as a series of red flags on why not to be hired.

11.People Matter More Than Perks – It’s so trendy to pick the company that offers the most flex time, unlimited meals, company massages, game rooms and team outings. Those should all matter, but not as much as the character of your founders and managers. Great leaders will mentor you and will be a loyal source of employment long after you’ve left. Make a conscious bet on the folks you’re going to work for and your commitment to them will pay off much more than those fluffy perks.

13.Speak Up, Not Out – We’re raising a generation of sh-t talkers. In your workplace this is a cancer. If you have issues with management, culture or your role & responsibilities, SPEAK UP. Don’t take those complaints and trash-talk the company or co-workers on lunch breaks and anonymous chat boards. If you can effectively communicate what needs to be improved, you have the ability to shape your surroundings and professional destiny.

14.You HAVE to Build Your Technical Chops – Adding “Proficient in Microsoft Office” at the bottom of your resume under Skills, is not going to cut it anymore. I immediately give preference to candidates who are ninjas in: Photoshop, HTML/CSS, iOS, WordPress, Adwords, MySQL, Balsamiq, advanced Excel, Final Cut Pro – regardless of their job position. If you plan to stay gainfully employed, you better complement that humanities degree with some applicable technical chops.

15.Both the Size and Quality of Your Network Matter – It’s who you know more than what you know, that gets you ahead in business. Knowing a small group of folks very well, or a huge smattering of contacts superficially, just won’t cut it. Meet and stay connected to lots of folks, and invest your time developing as many of those relationships as possible. (TIP: Here is myNetworking Advice)

16..You Need At Least 3 Professional Mentors – The most guaranteed path to success is to emulate those who’ve achieved what you seek. You should always have at least 3 people you call mentors who are where you want to be. Their free guidance and counsel will be the most priceless gift you can receive. (TIP: “The Secret to Finding and Keeping Mentors”)

17.Pick an Idol & Act “As If” – You may not know what to do, but your professional idol does. I often coach my employees to pick the businessperson they most admire, and act “as if.” If you were (fill in the blank) how would he or she carry themselves, make decisions, organize his/her day, accomplish goals? You’ve got to fake it until you make it, so it’s better to fake it as the most accomplished person you could imagine. (Shout out to Tony Robbins for the tip)

18.Read More Books, Fewer Tweets/Texts – Your generation consumes information in headlines and 140 characters: all breadth and no depth. Creativity, thoughtfulness and thinking skills are freed when you’re forced to read a full book cover to cover. All the keys to your future success, lay in the past experience of others. Make sure to read a book a month (fiction or non-fiction) and your career will blossom.

19.Spend 25% Less Than You Make – When your material needs meet or exceed your income, you’re sabotaging your ability to really make it big. Don’t shackle yourself with golden handcuffs (a fancy car or an expensive apartment). Be willing and able to take 20% less in the short term, if it could mean 200% more earning potential. You’re nothing more than penny wise and pound-foolish if you pass up an amazing new career opportunity to keep an extra little bit of income. No matter how much money you make, spend 25% less to support your life. It’s a guaranteed formula to be less stressed and to always have the flexibility to pursue your dreams.

20. Your Reputation is Priceless, Don’t Damage It – Over time, your reputation is the most valuable currency you have in business. It’s the invisible key that either opens or closes doors of professional opportunity. Especially in an age where everything is forever recorded and accessible, your reputation has to be guarded like the most sacred treasure. It’s the one item that, once lost, you can never get back.

While researching for the blog I came across this post. I think it’s very informative. Job searching these days isn’t easy and sometimes we forget we have ways of networking right at our fingertips. Check out the infographic below. Take these tips and use them to help you in your job search. Good luck 🙂

LinkedIn supplied us with great research on today’s leading job titles.

It’s crazy how time flies. iPhone and Android have just developed in the last 5 years. Fitness has become huge too! Through apps – you can have a coach, a meal plan or even a tracker. Oh and who knew that browsing social media is now a job? Managing a cloud?Is that even possible? Doesn’t that have to do with the weather? If so then please make it warm?!?! HA, just joking obviously. These are real positions REAL job listings. Below is a summary of researched information. You’ll see how much changed in only 5 years.

Take a look!

Scroll down and there is LinkedIn’s presentation of the Top 10 jobs that didn’t exist 5 years ago.

1. THE iOS DEVELOPER

March of 2008, Apple announced “iPhone OS ” and released it’s first iPod touch. In June 2010, they changed it to “iOS”. In 2011, iOS made up 60% of smartphones and tablet computers. According to wiki, last year 12,634 people were iOS developers when 5 years ago it was 89. Pretty amazing growth, right?

2. ANDROID DEVELOPER

During the same time Apple released iOS Google released android. In 2008 Google released it’s first handset. Since then Android Developer has become HUGE. In 20o8 only 53 job titles. According to wiki, last year over 10,000 job titles were listed on peoples professional profiles.

3. ZUMBA INSTRUCTOR

ZUMBA became popular in 2000. In 2008 is when you started seeing ZUMBA studios ALL over the United States. Also there are numerous conventions thrown throughout the US to continue the trend. It is truly an amazing workout – good instructors are key. According to wiki, in 2008 there were only 16 people listed as ZUMBA Instructors, in 2013 there’s over 6,000!

4. SOCIAL MEDIA INTERN

In the early 2000’s so many social networks were invented. Before these networks people were generally hired for plain old marketing purposes. With the two combined you have Social Media Marketing – that’s where Social Media Intern comes in. The ones who are generally hired for this position are the ones who grew up with social media.

5. DATA SCIENTIST

Data is increasing and we need someone to make sense of it all. That is where Data Scientists come in. That’s really all there is to this one.

6. UI/UX DESIGNER

Internet makes information easily accessible from our phones and tablets to our laptops. We have amazing portable devices that can provide us with information from getting directions through GPS to restaurant info. With the internet increasingly becoming more in demand it will have to be quicker and more user friendly. These designers dedicate every SECOND of their time and effort to build websites, apps and gadgets to make our lives cooler and easier. This will definitely grow as technology grows.

7. BIG DATA ARCHITECT

These guys are the ones that develop the data for more than just a phone and/or tablet. They are working on data for homes and cars along with other objects. This job title came about in 2008 and grew about 3,000 times SINCE then. (according to wiki)

8. BEACH BODY COACH.

Sounds ridiculous but it is an uber successful health, nutrition and workout business. There’s a website called beachbody.com. If you’ve heard of P90X than you know of beach body because that’s who invented it. When you belong to the website you get a coach. Not just an automated system – and ACTUAL coach that will personally contact you and guide you through your journey. I use it and I love it. Completely irrelevant BUT – I’m so happy it’s on this list because it deserves the credit. According to wiki, in 2008 beach body coaches just “existed”. NOW it has about 3,000 job titles.

9. ClOUD SERVICE SPECIALIST

First of all there’s a school to become a Certified Cloud Specialist – that definitely did’t exist before. Anyways these specialists make saving personal files and information in general more reliable. According to wiki, since 2008 job titles have grown from 194 to a little over 3,000.

10. DIGITAL MARKETING SPECIALIST

The growth of social media and internet are increasing rapidly and with that there’s more of a need for Digital Marketing Specialists.

Let’s face it looking for a job can take weeks, even months. Well..Now has never been a better time to find your dream role. So if you haven’t had much luck on your own maybe it’s time to work with a recruiter within your chosen industry.

Here are 5 reasons why:

1. A recruiter has constant contact with TOP employers in your industry. Which means the MINUTE your DREAM JOB opens up..YOU WILL BE NOTIFIED! The proactive recruiter will be advised of this job posting way before it blasts through all social media platforms (LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook etc.) as well as job boards (Indeed, Monster, Yelp etc). This means you get in first and can be considered for other possible roles as well.

2. Being in contact with a recruiter on a consistent basis is a great way to be current with the industries leading businesses. Your recruiter actively cultivates an often exclusive relationship with top businesses that may supply you with positions in your dream role.

3. If you’re in need of salary advice a recruiter is the way to go. They base it on the position you are looking for. All recruiters have an in depth knowledge on the salary to expect for which ever route you are choosing to go. They will also provide you with an edge by doing the hard part for you – NEGOTIATING – especially when it comes to a new contract.

4. A recruiter’s number one role is to know and understand your industry like a book. Along with this they will understand the job your looking for and how your skill set fits. That’s why having a recruiter is so great because they are able to put your skills and experience where it would best fit. Some times you aren’t a good candidate for the position that you are interested in and their job to guide you in the right direction for the future.

5. Your recruiter also eliminates all the extra referrals or the “middle-men”-if you will. The recruiter contacts the prospective employer and provides them with your referral details.

Are you in search for a job at the moment? Contact us at TTS Staffing. Follow us on – twitter @TTSstaffing – and – Facebook http://www.facebook.com/TTSstaffing. We post new jobs, advice and some fun entertainment!

Here’s a checklist you can use to help you along the interview process.

BE ON TIME!!! – NEED WE SAY MORE?!?!?!

Turn off your cell phone. Don’t even keep it on vibrate. Don’t just turn off your cell phone for the interviewer. Turn it off for you. It’s hard to avoid temptation to check the cell phone when you have a moment because you know someone called or sent a text message, but your interview is about you and the job, not about who is texting you. Keep your cell phone off at all times, so there is no motivation to check it before, during, or after your interview.

Always come with one or five copies of your resume. Bring a nice crisp manila folder with 5 resumes. You look organized, professional and you’re always prepared. After all you never know what could happen.

Don’t STARE. Although the standard advice is to maintain good eye contact throughout the interview, don’t take this to mean that you should stare fixedly at the interviewer. For instance, it would seem natural to look away briefly if you have to pause to think about your answer. Then reconnect strongly as you begin to speak.

Never put a current or ex employer down. By all means explain your reason for feeling certain ways about your past or present employers and always try to make a negative sound like a positive. Again this traces back to “professionalism”.

Filter. Always have a filter at your interview. Don’t use any foul language! You’re probably thinking “obviously”, but you’d be surprised what your interviewer/s have encountered in the past.

Don’t be too laid-back. Some interviews are more laid back than others. One important factor with interviews is that the “interviewer” wants to walk away feeling that he/she has a good sense of what your personality is like. Just be yourself, but know your boundaries.

Consistency is KEY. Don’t Lie! Ifyou lie about having a certain “background” how dumb will you feel if you are unable to perform the task at hand?!?! Just be honest on your resume…make sure your stories all match up.

DON’T Think the interview is mostly about you. All interviews, initially, is about the companies requirements. Your job at the interview is to prove you can fill the employers’ particular needs; that you can remove pain, solve problems, fix customer issues, save time or money etc. Yes, you need to see if the company will fit “your” needs, too, but initially at least, your primary focus is to influence them to want to know more.

Always send a Thank YOU. What we suggest as a staffing firm is an immediate email thank you and a handwritten note to show them you’re not messing around! Don’t let it go – be persistent.

I hope you enjoyed our little checklist here at TTS Staffing in NYC. Feel free to use this, happy hunting and GOOD LUCK!!

Before I start this “rant,”here’s a little back story if I may. I’m a girl who’s neverreally been into sports–that is, until I met my fiancée. Now being the insane football fan that I am (by association of course), I took it upon myself to do some research because quite frankly I’m a little upset that the biggest game of the season is taking place at MetLife stadium, literally a half hour from me, and MY team isn’t playing in it!

So, in my opinion, The Big Game specifically has hit a new high this year in both positives (sarcasm) and negatives (but mostly the latter).

Let’s start off with positives shall we: The tickets are a lot cheaper than normal, but do you want to know why? Well that’s because both teams playing are from the West Coast and its negative four degrees outside. All I have to say is HOW? HOW are none of the East Coast teams represented? Especially when it’s taking place in MetLife stadium this year? One last positive is that it is The Big Game, and no matter what it’s a fun time of the year all around.

So now here are the negatives: As always when entering any sports arena or venue, we ‘the fans’ feel like we have committed a crime… well at least I do. Whether it’s getting patted-down like crazy or rummaging through your bags with random searches. I’m not sure what’s scarier- not expecting it and being slightly caught off guard when it happens, or the fact that it’s a 20year old girl performing the frisk itself. Don’t get me wrong, I am ALL about taking proper precautions to keep our safety as fans a top priority but still to this day I feel violated- not cool.

As we all know, tailgating is the “pre-game” of any event and the official start of EVERY football game. Even if you aren’t physically attending the game, you are definitely having some sort of drinking / eating ‘type’ of party either at home in your man-cave or at the nearest bar or local watering hole right? C’mon let’s be honest with each other here. For most of us Sunday Funday is our cheat–day, which gives us an even more obvious reason to look forward to it. My point is, if you’re going to the game then YOU’RE GOING TO TAILGATE! Best of all, you are with your friends and/or family and just rockin’ out having the best time EVER!

Now listen up, because I have some upsetting info ahead so please grab a hold of yourselves (because I know I had to). For those of you attending the game this weekend, guess what ?… TAILGATING IS NOT ALLOWED. Yes sir, STRICTLY FORBIDDEN. Oh, but if you’d like to ‘pseudo-Tailgate’then you must do so in your car! Wait, What? Yup you heard it correctly…you know, just grill up some burgers and cheese fries, get some flip-cup going and have a few beers in your car– doesn’t sound hard or potentially dangerous at all. But wait, it gets better- if you decide to take your own vehicle you must not only spend $150 per car, but you should probably leave now because the traffic is going to be horrendous. Nope, you cannot take a cab or limo- can’t even go by horse & buggy or magic carpet ride if you’d like. Maybe get dropped off? Sorry, you can’t (shoulder shrug). Whatever means of transportation you are thinking of taking to make things easier, stop thinking about it because everyone else is also. Finally…Oh right- YOU JUST CAN’T!

You’re probably thinking to yourself, “Wow, is there more?”– ummm yea there’s more. The NFL has an approved shuttle system that you have the ability to utilize. Good thing this aforementioned shuttle system is for You and only You Mr. High-flyin’ VIP… NOT. You and the five million other people who are looking to pack into that shuttle at $51 a pop. Not $48 or $50, but $51 so be sure to carry some singles on ya. If you are a commuter already, does this sound at all appealing to you? I know for me, being a commuter myself, it sounds like a bunch of CRAP. Definitely not my idea of spending a Sunday Funday. I mean make no mistake that if my team were playing then that’s a different story entirely, yet even so I don’t think I’d chance it in all honesty. (Side note: my team clearly isn’t playing so I say Booo- thumbs down). At this point the game looks better from the my vantage point of sitting on my couch watching on my TV. Sounds way more appealing and A LOT cheaper than all of this craziness that will ensue.

According to ‘Sports Illustrated’ the NFL had “logistic concerns,” but now let’s think about this…shouldn’t they be prepared for something as “crazy” as The Big Game? Is this not something that they should have mastered at this point? Especially since they have about twenty weekends of madness every season? So I think the NFL caught onto the fact that people aren’t as dumb as they think (or look) because now they are worried about “security”, which goes back to our transportation issues and most of all TAILGATING. It’s money at stake- that’s what it’s always been about and always will be. Period.

Is it wrong to think that soon football, and sports in general, will probably explore a Pay Per View format? Will The Big Game become as expensive as ‘Wrestlemania?’ Will we be forced to purchase one ‘mega-game’ a month, like we do for boxing matches and UFC bouts?

How about this NFL- I’m definitely going to WALK to the game…from my bedroom to my living room 😉

And one last note– Who are you rooting for and why? Seahawks or Broncos (for all those local Seattle / Denver fans in NYC haha)?

FUN FACT: History continues as it has every single year wherein NO hosting city has ever had its own hometown team play in the game. The closest have been the Rams (who were in Los Angeles and played in Game XIV in Pasadena) & the 49ers (who played in Game XIX in Palo Alto).